Galicia Rental Information |
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Maps of
Galicia |
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Galicia Tourist Information Maps of GaliciaVigo Airport SpainSantiago de Compostela Airport |
Featured Hotels in Galicia
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Galicia Rental Information |
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Maps of
Galicia |
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Galicia Tourist Information Maps of GaliciaVigo Airport SpainSantiago de Compostela Airport |
Featured Hotels in Galicia
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Galicia Tourist Information
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Galician architecture can be admired both on the monumental jewels and on the traditional rural buildings |
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GALICIA
Galicia is known as "the green corner of Spain " and it is famous for
its beautiful landscapes, its tasty dishes and its original
architecture. Galician architecture can be admired both on the
monumental jewels and on the traditional rural buildings, this part of
the Northwest of Spain is a sharp contrast to the typical image of
Spanish landscape abroad.
Galicia is a huge, natural place where the nature is important. You can
enjoy the beautiful well-preservated landscape. You can also find many
cliffs and caverns which the sea and the time have worked into the
rocks with beaches of thin and white sand.Located at the NW of the
Iberian peninsula, it has an extension of 29.434 km2 (the 5,8% of Spain
total extension). To the North it borders on the Cantabric sea, to the
West on the Atlantic Ocean, to the South on the neighbour Portugal and
to the East it forms part, and it is also individual, of Spain.
The capital City is Santiago de Compostela. The main towns
are the capital cities of the four provinces - A Coruña, Lugo, Ourense
and Pontevedra -, Vigo and Ferrol. The population, quite scattered, is
almost three million inhabitants, with a density close to 100
inhabitants per square kilometer.
Plains are scarce in this hilly landscape, but wild countryside and mountains form appealing spots and natural parks. Some mountains soar as high as two thousand metres in the massifs of Ancares, Courel, Manzaneda and Pena Trevinca. It owns a developed and articulated coastline that means one third of the Spanish littoral and presents such original forms that are not comparable to any other section, either Cantabric, Mediterranean or Atlantic; The phenomenon of the rías (estuaries) is therefore unique and peculiar to Galicia in the context of the Spanish coast.
With regard to the climate, the region is comprised by its latitude in the parallels of the temperate area of the North hemisphere, where distinguished varieties of the temperate medium latitudes and western facade are located. But it also links with the Spanish meseta and has high mountains that transform a uniformed climate in one tinged with lots of notes that go from the oceanic characteristics to the mediterranean features, in a North-South direction to the contrasted transit, shore-inland, in a West-East direction.
The
hidrographic network is the resultant combination of landscape and
climate. This territorial space has been named 'the Galicia of
the10.000 rivers', being the many watercourses adapted to the ground
roughness. With regard to the temperatures, they are soft in general,
so we can not talk about neither a severe winter nor a hot summer. It
is better to point out that the annual average thermic values descend
from the coast to the interior, as well as the average top
temperatures.
Examples of the littoral annual average temperatures are the 13,8° in
Coruña and the 14,7° in Padrón and Vigo. In the plain, the examples are
the 13,7° of Monforte de Lemos and the 14° in Ourense. The values
worsen in the mountains, so they are 9,7° in the Alto del Rodicio and
8° in Pedrafita do Cebreiro.
It almost always rains in Galicia; however, the 150 rainy days a year
in the Northwestern coast lessen towards the interior and the Southeast
to the 100 rainy days a year and even fewer. Its greatest frequency is
in winter, followed (in this order) by autumn, spring and summer.
In Galicia, Galician and Castilian are both recognised as official languages. Galician is a Romance Language, that belongs to the Iberianromance family of languages. It has common aspects with portuguese (morphology and some vocabulary).
With an exclusive gastronomy, from the meats of hunt, deers, pheasants, wild boar and the one from the farm like veal and capons.
The seafood like lubricants, spider-crabs, barnades and clams concludes our excellent gastronomy which Galicia is popular for.
Galicia´s inland is mainly mountainous and its coastline is indented by many deep estuaries called "rias". The sea has a moderate influence on the weather of Galician coastline and that is why the Rias Baixas (Low Rias) are the warmest region in Northern Spain . Inland rivers are so numerous that a well known Galician writer said that Galicia was "the country of one thousand rivers
The city was born from a legend: the discover in 813 A.D. of the sepulchre of St. James The Apostle who was behaded in 44 A.D. in Palestine. King Alfonso II visited the site and ordered a modest temple and monastery to be built, erecting the center around which the city later grew.
Alfonso III built the ancient basilica at the end of the 9th Century. It was destroyed during the Moorish invasion of Almanzor in the year 997 A.D. which completely devastated the city. Santiago was rebuilt and encircled by a wall. In 1075 A.D. Bishop Diego Peláez began the building-works on the cathedral, which continued under the efficient supervision of Bishop Diego Gelmírez, a key figure in the development of the city.
The
11th and 12th Centuries were the key-days of the pilgrimages to
Compostela. The Pilgrim's road to Santiago de Compostela was an
extremely efficient means of scientific, artistic and literary
communication, within the unmistakably rural region of Galicia,
Santiago became an important center of economic and cultural activity,
a melting pot of distant cultures and civilizations. At the end of the
12th Century the master-crofstman Mateo built the Pórtico de la Gloria
(Gateway of Glory).
The end
of the 14th Century witnessed the start of a turbulent period which
lasted into the 15th Century. The arrival of Archbishop Fonseca, the
founder of the University, marked the beginning of the Renaissance in
Compostela. It was the Catholic Monarchs who brought the Court to the
City in 1501. In 1534 the Royal Hospital and the Colegio de Fonseca
were built.
At the end of the 17th Century it was the archbishops and religious orders who promoted the Baroque building frenzy which created a school of its own in the 18th Century. This style pervades the historic center of Santiago -the cathedral, the monasteries and the churches- and gives it unique character which persists today.
Apart from being famous for its university, monuments and religious and commercial activity, this city of 100,000 inhabitants is also a major center of administration, having become the capital of the Autonomous Community of Galicia in 1982. It is the seat of the Xunta (regional government), the regional parliament and other regional administrative institutions. The city plays an important role in the timber industry. It is also extremely well connected to the outside, being centrally situated between the most important urban centers in Galicia.
Santiago de Compostela will be one of the European Cities of Culture in the year 2000.
With an exclusive gastronomy, from the meats of hunt, deers, pheasants, wild boar and
the one from the farm like veal and capons.
The seafood like lubricants, spider-crabs, barnades and clams concludes our excellent
gastronomy which Galicia is popular for.
Galicia´s inland is mainly mountainous and its coastline is indented by many deep estuaries called "rias". The sea has a moderate influence on the weather of Galician coastline and that is why the Rias Baixas (Low Rias) are the warmest region in Northern Spain . Inland rivers are so numerous that a well known Galician writer said that Galicia was "the country of one thousand rivers
By road
From Santiag, take the A-9 motorway to go to A Coruña and Ferrol;
going south, the motorway goes along the Rías Baixas passing by
Pontevedra and Vigo, reaching the Portuguese border at Tui.
From Madrid to Santiago de Compostela (600 km), take the main N-VI
(A-6) road to A Coruña and either take the N- in Lugo or from A Coruña
the A-9 motorway.
Distances by road from Santiago de Compostela to the main cities in
Galicia:
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 Galicia
Institutional Information. Xunta de Galicia. |
 The Pilgrims' Way to
Santiago.Xacobeo 99 |
| Some links about Galicia
(no english) |
 The
Galician language |
The Galician coastline offers a number of small sandy beaches and coves. The nearest beaches to Santiago de la Compostela are a 40 minute drive away, so it is advisable to hire a car to get to them.
Portonovo is a small
fishing town which is right next to Sanxenxo. They are busy tourist
resorts with great beaches that offer excellent amenities.
O Grove, Lanzada Beach, A Toxa Islan: O Grove is a charming seaside town not far from Santiago de Compostela which is famous for the seafood. From this town you are not far from A Toxa Island where you will find many different bars, restaurants and a variety of beautiful beaches. The most famous is La Lanzada on the Peninsula El Grove which has the thirteenth century Hermitage of Nuestra Senora de Lanzada.
Vilanova De Arousa is
the famous birth place of the great writer Ramón María del Valle –
Inclán, and the Island of Arousa offers pristine beaches and
breathtaking landscapes
Orzan Beach is a white sandy beach with heavy waves in La Coruna which is well equipped with a huge promenade runs along the entire length of Orzán cove and is well-worth visiting. It has been awarded the blue flag.
The golf courses in this Santiago are set in areas of outstanding natural beauty making them a joy to play on. They all have excellent facilities and are extremely popular so pre-booking is recommended.
Real Aero Club Santiago
General Pardiñas, 34 Santiago de Compostela 15701
Tel: +34 981 59 24 00 Fax: +34 981 59 24 00
www.aerosantiago.es
This golf course can be divided in two parts: the first nine holes are part of the old course which opened in 1976 and are technically difficult with trees, small greens and lakes. The second 9 holes on the Real Aero Club are a recent addition and well designed on flat terrain.
Club de Golf de Lugo
Santa Marta de Fixós,
Tel: +34 982 176 314 Fax +34 982 176 314
www.golflugo.com
The Lugo Golf Club is a twenty minute drive from Santiago just seven kilometres from the city of Lugo. The course was designed by José Manuel Canfrán and has broad fairways edged by old oak, pine, alder and birch trees surrounded by natural lakes. It has a wonderful landscape and you can play a round of golf in a relaxed atmosphere here.
Club amenities at the Lugo Golf Club include a driving range, putting green, practice bunker, golf academy, clubs and trolley hire, restaurant, bar cafeteria, swimming pool, tennis and a crèche.
Club de Golf Val de
Rois
Lugar Las Gándaras - Seira, s/n 15911
Tel: +34 981 810 862 Fax +34 981 810 864
www.golfrois.com
The golf course Val de Rois stands in the beautiful green Mahía Valley and is surrounded by eucalyptus and pine trees. It is a difficult course with greens well protected by water hazards and bunkers. It is a 30 minute drive from Santiago de Compostela and the easiest way of getting there is to hire a car.
Amenities on offer at the Val de Rois Golf Club include a driving range, putting and pitching greens, a golf academy, trolley, cart and clubs rental, pro shop, restaurant, outdoor swimming pool, paddle, tennis and a crèche.
The markets on the Virxe da Cerca
sell traditional Galician produce and crafts with Pulpeiras (octopus
sellers), wine and liqueur sellers being a popular choice.
On the Plaza de Abastos is a granite stone covered market which
is open every morning. Mercado de Abastos is east of the cathedral and
offers a mix of indoor and outdoor stalls set inside towering stone
doorways and shelters, selling seasonal fruits and vegetables, edible 
flowers, cheeses, pickled red
peppers, fish, meats, honey, and local confectionery.
Because Galicia is coastal and gets rain throughout the year there is a twelve month growing season. In winter you will find winter greens (similar to kale) and during the summer soft fruits like peaches and nectarines dominate and continue into the autumn.
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